When Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds came by our Apogee Studio Sessions in between Coachella shows they really put the emphasis on studio.
Most of the time, these intimate performances have a way of turning into mini-concerts that aren’t necessarily recording sessions but are a far cry from The Greek. But on a Thursday in April, the powerful presence that is Nick Cave and …

 
 
What I think is interesting about The Decemberists choice to cover R.E.M.s “Cuyahoga” is the fact that they STARTED their live session with it!
You will never convince me that the Michael Stipe-penned environmentalist folk-ballad about the Cuyahoga river in Northern Ohio is of “Stairway To Heaven” quality, but for a group to go live on air and cover one of indie rock’s sacred acts …

by NPR Music’s  Stephen Thompson

If you’ve ever been poolside on a hot day, you know what it’s like to have your senses bombarded with leisure; to feel the sun radiating and shimmering off everything around you. Watch the first few moments of this Field Recording, with its bobbing inner tubes and lounging vacationers, and you can practically smell the spots where chlorine meets concrete.
We …

Conor J O’Brien is the musical mind behind Ireland’s latest export Villagers. There’s been no shortage of talented singer songwriters to come out of the Emerald Isle but Conor’s combination of bittersweet lyrics and extremely catchy tunes have him standing out in the crowd.
In his Morning Becomes Eclectic debut, Conor played songs off his new album “Awayland” without the comforts of his backing band. …

When Robyn Hitchcock wrapped up his Morning Becomes Eclectic performance last week, we had run out of time for his encore. Which was a huge bummer for us and the listening audience because he had chosen to cover Bob Dylan‘s“Quinn The Eskimo (Mighty Quinn)” to end the show.
But being the English Gentleman that he his and nary the sort to disappoint, Robyn obliged us …

Vampire Weekend played a diverse set of old and new songs for a crowd of 200 KCRW Members, staff, press and fans between their Coachella gigs. (Check out photos here)
Standing out among the new songs from their forthcoming album, “Modern Vampires Of The City“, was the catchy track “Unbelievers”.
With frontman Ezra Koenig playing an acoustic guitar, the song features some beautiful harmonizing between him …

Josh Ritter’s sense of storytelling in song is both heartbreaking and uplifting.
We started playing his single “Joy To You Baby” on MBE in winter and to this day I cannot concentrate on the lyrics too much before getting misty eyed. It’s not even THAT sad of a song.
On his return to Morning Becomes Eclectic, Josh packed his mixed bag of optimistic ballads and tales …

When Benjamin Gibbard came by our studios for his Morning Becomes Eclectic performance, he did so on the heels of his first solo project “Former Lives”.
For an artist whose normal associations are so astronomically successful, (read: The Postal Service, Death Cab For Cutie) seeing the completely stripped down songwriter by himself was profoundly moving. Even he said these particular songs wouldn’t, by themselves, ever …

We all know the story;  You pick up an instrument and you learn to play a few songs. You grab some friends who are terrible just like you and you start to play together. Joe can’t keep a beat on the drums and Michelle can only find two chords on her bass. But talent be damned… you’re gonna  play “Come As You Are”  That.  …

The great thing about blues music is the open format it creates for jamming. Some of the all time great blues songs are a collection of talented musicians jamming and riffing off one another, taking their turns doing their thing.
When Morning Becomes Eclectic welcomed Ben Harper and Charlie Musselwhite, the soul of blues music was palpable. Ben’s classic guitar riffs and perfect timing accompanied …